Introducing the Most Stylish Chef’s Pants Ever—Yes, There Is Such a Thing

Maxine Thompson was always a bit uncomfortable in the kitchen. She wasn’t a bad cook. In fact, the self-trained chef was quite the opposite. But physically, something was off. “I was working in a restaurant in Tasmania in 2013 and we did 100 covers a night with the choice of an eight- or 10-course tasting menu that changed every day,” she explains. “With only three of us in the kitchen, the days were long, hard, and fast, and I could not, for the life of me, find a pair of trousers that were cool, comfortable, and durable enough to work in for 14 hours a day.” Thompson, who previously studied fashion design and business management, took these matters into her own hands, and started sketching.

In February of this year, she officially launched her line of ’40s-inspired, high-waist, slim-fit chef’s trousers for women called PolkaPants. The line has been in development for the last two years, and the idea was solidified for Thompson after she commiserated with other women in the restaurant business. “I started speaking with other female chefs and discovered the vast majority of them experienced the same problem that I had,” she said. “We were limited to baggy trousers from kitchen supply stores, chain store trousers, or jeans. They would all either lose their shape, or a button would fall off, or the crotch would split, or the fabric would bleed onto my chef’s whites when I was scrubbing down at the end of the night.” The pants Thompson designed along with her twin sister are made from fabric and materials sourced in the U.K. and Turkey—97 percent cotton with a 3 percent stretch for movement. “The cotton is not only hard-wearing, but also breathable in a hot kitchen,” she says.

Practicality aside, the pants also provide the chance to bring some style into the down-and-dirty, grin-and-bear-it kind of workplace that is a restaurant kitchen. The trousers come in black, houndstooth, and a signature polka-dot print designed by the Bristol-based artist Victoria Topping using screen-printing. (Because of this process, each pair is completely unique.) And while Thompson has just begun her mission to dress female chefs, she’s already amassed a loyal following. As the baker Jemma Wilson of Crumbs & Doilies says of PolkaPants, “So long, builder’s bum. Goodbye, shapeless, baggy arse!” Chef Gizzi Erskine, a British TV personality, also notes, “The U.K. in particular has seen an influx in young, female chefs over the last few years, and PolkaPants are a welcome addition to the movement.” She adds, “I even wear mine outside of work.”